


An All New Christmas

by inatrice



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Drunk Shiro, Embarrassed Keith, Established Relationship, First Christmas, Galra-ish Keith, Keith is a stronk boy, M/M, Mistletoe, Trans Keith (Voltron), alcohol use, canon adjacent, embarrassed shiro, sap
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 10:34:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13144830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inatrice/pseuds/inatrice
Summary: Team Voltron spend their first Christmas together in space. While looking for a tree, the locals give Shiro and Keith more than they bargained for.For the Sheith Secret Santa 2017!!





	An All New Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sniperette](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sniperette/gifts).



> Merry Sheithmas!! My giftee was sniperette! I tried to go with domestic fluff but the fic took on a mind of its own and turned into this. I tried to get as many details as you supplied in there. I hope you like it! Happy Holidays!!

It’s Pidge who first brings it up. They’re all sitting together in the lounge when she pops her head up from her hunched positions, eyebrow quirked.

"How long have we been out here?"

Hunk frowns and looks up to the ceiling, fingers moving as he does the calculations. "Uh, about 8 months give or take."

"Doesn't that put us right around mid-December?" Lance asks, scrolling on his Altean version of a phone.

Keith can't help but notice the way Shiro's back straightens next to him. Keith smiles to himself. He knows Shiro is always big on holidays, always likes to go all out because it means he can express his love for his friends and loved ones. An idea strikes him.

"We should decorate the castle." Keith suggests. Three pairs of eyes turn on him immediately. "What?" Keith shrugs. "Can't I be excited for Christmas?"

"Didn't expect that from you, mullet." Lance says, with a surprised expression.

"I think it's a great idea, Keith." Shiro says, cutting off any oncoming bickering. "Plus I think it'll help boost morale."

Keith can see Lance mocking them under his breath, but he doesn't engage. It isn't worth it. It rarely is. Besides, the idea is mostly for Shiro's benefit. If anyone needs something else to focus on, it's him. He deserves it after everything he'd been through. So Keith just rolls his eyes and grabs his tablet that is sitting next to him on the couch. He pulls up a map of all the nearest planets and, after some searching, finds one that's nearly covered in a forest that looks vaguely coniferous. He nudges Shiro with his elbow and puts the tablet in his lap.

"We could go here to look for a Christmas tree?"

"What's Christmas?" Comes a curious voice from behind them. Both Coran and Allura walk into the lounge.

"It's a holiday!" Pidge exclaims as she slams her hands down on top of the couch. "There's a tree and lights and presents and stockings!"

"Stockings?" Coran asks, leaning down to look at her closer. "You mean like your socks?"

"Yes, but bigger." Pidge explains. "We put them over the fire and put  _ more _ presents in them."

"That's certainly a lot of presents." Coran says, stroking his moustache with a curious look.

"Technically, we used it as a holiday to get together with our loved ones, have a big meal, and exchange gifts." Shiro interjects with a smile at the both of them. "It's not  _ just _ about the presents, Pidge."

"That sounds lovely," Allura says, clasping her hands together. "We had a holiday similar to that around this time of year on Altea. It’s called Groggory Day."

"We were thinking of decorating a bit since we're all a little bit homesick," Shiro tells her. Keith can hear the sheepishness in his voice. They all know their homesickness is nothing compared to their Altean friends'.

"I think that's a wonderful idea." Allura says with a smile. "And you can tell us all about your Earth traditions."

Keith feels some of the tension leave Shiro's shoulders at her response. He picks up the tablet from Shiro's lap again and extends it to Coran. "We were thinking of going here to look for a tree."

Coran swipes through a few things on the tablet, moustache twitching. "Ah yes, planet Velsal. The locals were extremely friendly to Altea in the past. They're mainly a farming society. We should check in on them anyway, make sure they aren't suffering under the Empire."

"Two birds, one stone." Shiro says, standing up. "Alright team. Let's suit up and head out."

"And, while you're gone, Coran and I can go to the mall to look for these lights and stockings you mentioned?" Allura says, giving Coran a wide, pleading grin.

With an amused sigh, Coran agrees. "Alright, Princess. I think you've earned a trip to the mall." They all laugh as Allura pumps her fist into the air in victory. "That Earth shop there should have everything shouldn't it?"

"It won't be a good Earth store if they don't have anything Christmas." Pidge tells him, already scrambling towards the door. "Let's go already, you guys!"

"Oooh, and when we come back, I can show you how to make a Christmas dinner, Coran!" Hunk says, already excited at the prospect of making his friends a meal.

Keith can't help the small smile that shows up on his lips as Hunk starts listing off ingredients to look for while they're at the mall. Despite what most of them think, he's come to love the little family that's been built up around him. Even with the Quintessence accident that happened two months ago, his Galra blood turning his hair white and his canine teeth a bit longer, they still accepted him as a full member of the team. Even Allura had started talking to him more again. Shiro had assured him that his new hair was cute, telling him they matched now. It was a bit strange, the changes almost helped him accept his heritage and his body more. Of course, the Quintessence healing the scars on his chest helped a hell of a lot, too. He follows the team out to the armory and they all change into their armor before heading to the hangar.

They all pile into the Yellow Lion and they're off to Velsal, no wormhole needed. There's a clear landing area near a small village that's on the edge of one of the forests and as they descend, little gray and brown rabbit-like people come to greet them. Thankfully the locals have heard of Voltron and their mission to save the galaxy. One of the village elders, Eiken, listens closely to their request for a tree and leads them confidently into the forest, surrounded by several children who are ecstatic to be following the Paladins of Voltron around. The trees on Velsal certainly look like Earth's pine trees, but they end up being much…fleshier. Instead of pine needles, there are little green sacs that are soft to the touch. Lance looks put off immediately.

"Are they…sentient?" Shiro asks, eyeing the branches carefully.

"Oh, dear me, no!" Eiken says with a laugh. He runs a paw along the not-leaves as two of the children begin to climb the limbs, shrieking with joy. "There is nothing here that tries to eat them because the grass and low growing bushes are so plentiful. So they have not developed much in the ways of defense."

Shiro nods at his words, accepting the answer. He glances over to Keith who shrugs. In Keith's eyes, if it's good for Shiro, that's enough. "Can we take one?" Keith asks the elder.

"Of course!" Eiken agrees without hesitation. "We would love to support the Paladins of Voltron any way we can."

Eiken orders the children back to the village to grab people who can cut down a tree for them as he leads them through the forest to find the perfect specimen. His idea of a perfect specimen ends up being an gigantic tree that Keith is sure will take up the majority of one of the ballrooms in the Castle.

Eiken smiles up at them expectantly. Hunk and Pidge look excited, both murmuring they've never had a tree this large before.

"Isn't it a little big?" Shiro asks, rubbing the back of his head, making the three other Paladins turn to him with puppy dog eyes. "How are we gonna get it back guys, really."

"Yellow can fit it in her mouth!" Hunk says. "If we shove it in there real good, maybe it won't even freeze!" He folds his hands together and pouts, making sure his bottom lip trembles. It’s almost pathetic and Keith feels he has to step in before the locals start to think Voltron is made up of a bunch of toddlers.

"C'mon, Shiro," Keith teases, arms folded across his chest. "Where's your holiday spirit?"

Shiro looks like he's fighting off a smile when he meets Keith's eyes before he relents. "All right. What the heck. It's our first family Christmas in space."

The others whoop and Hunk bounds over to give Keith a bone-crushing hug. Even Eiken claps his paws together. The people from the village arrive just then, tools that look like saws in tow. It's a team effort, but the tree finally comes down and they all work to drag it back to where Yellow is waiting for them. Before they even have a chance to start saying thank you, Eiken and his family insist they stay for a feast prepared by the villagers. Keith shares a glance with Shiro. They both know there is no denying Hunk a chance to sample more alien cuisine.

The Paladins are all sat near the head of the community table as honored guests. Keith and Shiro sit to Eiken's left as the eldest two, while Hunk, Pidge, and Lance sit to the right. The dinner is delicious, made up of mostly soups and salads as, Eiken explains, Velsal is a simple agrarian planet. Hunk speaks intensely with the villagers asking them about each and every ingredient, while Lance keeps making significant eye contact with Shiro.

"What is it, Lance?" Shiro finally asks, setting down his cup of what tasted like tea.

"We're on an agrarian planet, we should see if they have mistletoe." Lance insists. He pulls out his phone and taps a few times before handing it to Shiro. "Ask him if he has it!"

Shiro takes his phone and gives a low chuckle that sends shivers up Keith's spine. "Eiken, we have one last favor to ask."

"But of course, dear Paladin!" Eiken chirps, wobbling slightly. Keith had noticed he and the other elders were drinking something different. He leans in closer to try and get a whiff of what it is.

Shiro shows Lance's phone to Eiken, a picture of Earth's mistletoe up on the screen. "Your planet wouldn't happen to have anything like this here would it?"

Eiken gasps as if scandalized. "You mean the clinging plant?"

"Clinging plant?" Keith asks, brows furrowed.

"Yes, it is a foul species that clings to our shrubs and feeds off of them." He shudders and wraps his chubby arms around himself. "Why do you need it?"

Shiro gives Eiken a sheepish look. "Well, on our planet it's a tradition to put sprigs of it in a doorway and whoever you meet underneath of it, you kiss." He glances over at Keith with the last words and Keith feels his cheeks heat up.

Eiken shakes his furry head, long ears flopping and whiskers twitching. "A strange tradition for strange Earthlings." He looks over to Lance and waves a paw at him. "If that is what you want, you may take it. Better it with you than strangling more of our shrubs."

Lance gives Shiro a wide-eyed smile and Shiro shakes his head as well. "You want it? You go look for it. Just don't stray too far, we'll be leaving in a few vargas."

"Yeah!" Lance crows and leaps away from the table. "C'mon kids, let's go find Lancey Lance some mistletoe!" Several of the children that were seated at the table jump up as well, following Lance over to the nearest group of shrubs, all shrieking with laughter.

Keith shakes his head as he watches Lance search until Shiro elbows him in the ribs. "Let him have his fun. Where's your holiday spirit, Keith?" He teases.

Keith elbows him back and they both laugh as Eiken eyes them. "Paladins," He says, leaning towards them, his elbows on the table. "Have you ever tried storil before?" He pushes his cup filled with a light purple liquid towards them.

"Storil?" Keith asks, leaning forward as well. Then remembering Eiken's changed behavior he adds, "Is it anything like nunvil?"

"A modified form, yes." Eiken confirms with a smile.

Shiro leans down as well, sniffing at the cup. " _ Keith _ ." He says sharply. "This kinda smells like eggnog."

Keith gives him a soft smile. "You think it'll taste like nunvil though?"

"Why don't the two of you give it a try?" Eiken encourages, motioning for an elder to get them both cups.

The two Paladins look down at the cups set before them. Keith glances at Shiro with a quirked eyebrow before he takes the storil and lifts it. He and Shiro clink the cups together and take a sip. Keith fights off a shiver. It's not nearly as bad as nunvil, but it sure isn't great. It's still hot dog water, but this time there's a dairy-like creaminess to it. They both cough as the storil burns its way down their throat.

"That's…certainly something." Shiro says as he holds the cup out to examine it.

"Please, please," Eiken encourages. "The second sip is always the best."

Keith and Shiro exchange glances. Keith shrugs and brings the cup back up to his lips. He takes a longer drink this time and watches as Shiro follows suit.

The storil hits Shiro about 20 minutes later. He's giggling with Eiken about some story about one of the children in the village. Keith shakes his head again, amused at how much alcohol affects Shiro. Keith's watching Pidge and Hunk help some of the children with a structure that looks like a playground when he feels hands on his hips. He's pulled to the right, smushed into Shiro's side with a nose in his hair.

"I forgot how soft your hair is, Keithy." Shiro says, voice muffled.

Keith feels his cheeks start to burn and whatever is fermented in the storil isn't helping one bit. "Shiro, what the hell?" He certainly isn't used to any PDA around the team, let alone aliens.

"Shh, no swearing around the kids." Shiro scolds him gently. Around them, Eiken and the other elders are giggling.

"You're a kid, you lightweight." Keith grumbles trying to push himself out of Shiro's grasp. It's not that he dislikes being held by Shiro, quite the opposite in fact. They just haven't told the team they're sorta dating yet. Not to mention he doesn't want to make the locals here uncomfortable. They  _ are _ representing the intergalactic warrior Voltron after all.

"Just cause you can handle your alcohol better than me," It's Shiro's turn to grouse, his hands running up Keith's chest. "That means I spend less money at the bar, you know."

"Shiro, we're not even at a bar." He tells him, moving his head away from where Shiro is trying to nuzzle him. If they were in his bedroom on the Castle he wouldn't move at all. But Hunk and Pidge are  _ right there _ . "We're at what is essentially an ambassadorial dinner."

"Heh, ambassador of  _ loooove _ ." Shiro suggests, waggling his eyebrows.

"Oh my god." Keith breathes, his head hanging down. Eiken and the other elders are rolling on the ground now, unable to control their laughter.

"Eeewww, are you guys kissing?" Pidge teases as she and Hunk walk back up to the table, mischievous smiles on their faces. Keith's head shoots up and he feels his face burning even hotter.

"There isn't even any mistletoe. You two are embarrassing." Hunk chimes in.

"Who needs mistletoe when you can just kiss your boyfriend any time?" Shiro asks them, puckering his lips and making kissy noises at Keith.

"Oh my god, is Shiro drunk?" Pidge asks, trying her best not to burst out laughing.

"He absolutely is." Keith says, finally able to wriggle out of Shiro's grasp. "And this was absolutely a mistake. Hunk get Yellow ready to go." He orders as he stands up.

"Aww, but this is hilarious." Hunk says, watching Shiro whine and cling to Keith's leg.

"Guys, guys!" Lance bounces over to them, but freezes the second he sees the Red and Black Paladins. "I- oh Jesus what is happening over here?"

"Shiro's drunk." Pidge tells him.

"No, we're leaving." Keith says.

"It's all fine with me," Lance says, his eyes glittering with amusement. "I found all the mistletoe I need anyway."

Shiro gasps, still sitting at his place at the table on the ground. "Keithy, there's mistletoe. Now you have to kiss me!" His resemblance to an indignant child is eerie.

Instead, Keith growls and scrubs a hand over his face while the other Paladins join in with the villagers in their laughter. "Does this surprise none of you?" He asks, exasperated at this point.

"Nope."

"Not at all."

"Wait, you guys were hiding it?"

Keith gives each of them a blank stare. "That's it. C'mon. We're packing up." He turns to Eiken who is wiping at his eyes. "Eiken, thank you so much for letting us have a tree and some mistletoe. And also for the food."

"Anytime, my dear Paladin, anytime." Eiken assures him, patting his arm. "Please do feel free to come back whenever you like. We'll have more storil then as well!"

Keith forces a smile onto his face. "Great! We'll remember that." He turns to Shiro who's rubbing his head into Keith's hip. "Shiro, stand up, we're going home."

"Nah," Shiro says, still rubbing.

"I'll give you a kiss once we get back to Yellow." Keith tells him. Anything to get out of here and away from this ridiculous situation.

Shiro's head snaps up. "You mean it?"

"Yes, now come on." He holds his hand out and Shiro takes it, pulling himself up off the ground. They're about to follow the other Paladins, when Shiro stumbles and laughs as he can't seem to walk straight. Keith just sighs and in the next second he has Shiro flung over his shoulders to carry back to the Lion.

"Ooh baby!" Shiro hoots, making the other Paladins absolutely  _ lose it. _ "Guys, did you know my boyfriend is the strongest boyfriend?"

They trudge back to Yellow, Shiro chanting, "I get a kiss!" with each of Keith's footsteps. There's an air of amusement once they're inside the Lion, almost as if she's laughing at the situation as well. Once they're all settled in, and Shiro is sat on the floor for his own protection, Hunk maneuvers Yellow over and she takes the tree in her mouth and they start flying back to the castle.

Not even five minutes later, a whine comes from the floor. "Keithy…where's my kiss?"

"Yeah, Keithy, where is his kiss?" Pidge asks, devilish smile on her face.

"Don't call me that." Keith frowns at her.

"Why? Is that your bedroom name?" Lance elbows him as the other two laugh.

"You guys are only doing this because Shiro isn't coherent enough to stop you." Keith growls, glaring at Lance.

"Correct." Pidge says.

"We gotta get it in now or we never will." Lance adds.

"Keeeeith." Shiro whines again.

"It's not polite to keep the man waiting, Keith." Lance says, offering his sage romantic advice.

Keith just sighs and goes to sit next to Shiro on the floor while the others continue to laugh amongst themselves. Shiro tugs him into a tight hug immediately. "I missed you."

"I was five feet away, Shiro." Keith says, unable to keep the fondness out of his voice.

"Still missed you." Shiro says stubbornly.

"Okay," Keith concedes. He pats Shiro's face gently and leans in for a kiss. He ignores the amused groans that accompany it and finally let's Shiro rest his head in the crook of his neck while they fly home.

Coran and Allura greet them when they return to the Castle, excited to show off their haul from the mall, but they stop when they see Keith leading the team back in, Shiro once again across his shoulders.

"What happened?" Allura asks, worry painting her face as she steps forward. "Did something go wrong?"

"No, everything was great! We found a tree, some mistletoe. The Velsalians are a really great people, they fed us and everything!" Hunk says. "Shiro just got into some storil."

Allura laughs out loud while Coran gives and amused shake of his head. "That's quite a bit stronger than nunvil." She says, covering her mouth with her hand. "Is he all right?"

"He'll be fine," Keith insists, walking further into the Castle. "He just needs to sleep it off."

Shiro lifts his head as they near the Alteans and waves. "Hi Allura. Did you have fun at the mall?"

Allura giggles again. "Yes, Shiro. We had a wonderful time, thank you."

"Oh, that's good." He replies with a smile. "We got a tree. We're gonna decorate it. Right, Keith?"

"Yeah, buddy." Keith says, glancing down with a soft smile. "You're gonna take a nap first though."

"What!"

"Yeah, you're sloshed. You need some sleep." Keith says, adjusting Shiro on his shoulders.

"They're gonna decorate without me, Keith." He's whining again, moving around to try to make Keith put him down. "Don't let them."

With a sigh, Keith turns back to their team, meeting their amused expressions. "Guys, you won't decorate without your Black Paladin will you?"

Hunk steps up to pat Shiro's shoulder. "Don't worry, man. We'll wait for you." He laughs. "I gotta show Coran the ins and outs of a full course Christmas dinner anyway."

Shiro sighs with relief. "Thank you, Hunk."

With Shiro appeased, Keith brings him back to his back to his room. Keith puts him carefully onto the bed and works Shiro's armor plates off of him before taking off his own. He sets the pieces in the corner and when he looks back Shiro is already asleep. Keith smiles at him yet again and leans down to brush his bangs away from his face and kiss his forehead before leaving him to sleep.

A few hours later, Shiro stirs in the bunk. Keith looks up from his phone and leans over on his knees to smile at Shiro's stirring form. "Hey," He says softly when Shiro finally looks at him.

"Hey," Shiro replies, giving him a tired smile and rubbing the crud out of his eyes. "When did we get back to the Castle?"

"A few hours ago," Keith tells him, trying not to smile too hard.

Shiro groans and presses his fingertips to his temples. "What happened? My head's pounding."

Keith sniffs and runs a hand over his cheek. "You got drunk."

"I what?" Shiro shoots back at him, almost sounding offended that he would be so irresponsible in front of the younger Paladins. "I remember Eiken giving us a drink and…not much else." His eyes go wide and he swears under his breath.

"Yeah, you told me not to do that in front of the kids." Keith says, unable to hold back a laugh.

"Oh, god." Shiro groans again. "What all did I do, Keith? Just tell me."

"Well," Keith says, leaning back in the chair. "You called me Keithy and baby during an ambassadorial dinner." He counts on one finger. "You clung to my leg and whined when I told you it was time to go home." Another finger. "Called me your boyfriend several times in front of the team." A third finger. "And you chanted 'I get a kiss' as I carried you back to Yellow."

Shiro swears again and throws the blanket up over his face. "Just end me. I can't face them again."

Keith laughs at him and stands up from the chair. He crosses the room and sits down next to Shiro on the bed. "Nah, I wanna keep you around to embarrass you for a while longer." He says, pulling the blanket back down. He smiles as Shiro glares up at him. There's no real fight behind the look and it makes Keith smile wider.

"So they know?" Shiro asks, breaking eye contact.

"Oh, yeah. They know." Keith confirms. "Apparently they've known for a long time. None of them were surprised."

Shiro laughs at that and rolls his head to the side to look at Keith again. "Well, at least we're not keeping secrets from the team anymore." He sits up and closes his eyes hard. "That's one good thing that came out of this."

Keith nods. "There's another thing, too."

Shiro opens his eyes again and gives Keith a questioning frown. Keith eyes flick up to the low ceiling just above the bed and Shiro's eyes follow. Hanging there is a single sprig of the mistletoe that Lance had found. Shiro huffs out a laugh as a blush covers his cheeks.

"Stole it from Lance when we were coming back in Yellow." Keith admits with a smug smile.

"Of course you did." Shiro rolls his eyes. He leans forward and tugs on the front of Keith's shirt, pulling him close enough for a soft, sweet kiss under the mistletoe. "Merry Christmas, Keith." Shiro whispers as they pull back.

"Merry Christmas, Shiro." Keith presses another quick kiss to his lips. "C'mon," He says, grabbing Shiro's hands and pulling him out of bed. "You made them promise to hold off decorating until you felt better. I bet they want to start."

The two of them laugh as they head out of the bedroom, ready to have their first Christmas as a family in space.

**Author's Note:**

> And that's it! I hope you liked it Sniper! 
> 
> Thanks for reading and thank you to Law for organizing this event. It was a lot of fun and I met some very cool people while working on it! Thank you to Alex and Andy and Myst and Kieran and Jojo for beta-ing, listening to me while I worked on this, and for helping me keep it in the right direction. Love y'all! And Happy Holidays!
> 
> Come find me on twitter @inatrice


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